Professor’s Corner – Selling at Retail? Increase your ROI on marketing dollars.

Posted on 22. Jul, 2009 by in iGrok Research

Some analysts have explored the idea or theory that marketing a product to the general consumer market at large, via advertising messages through various media delivery vehicles, falls short of what additional results can be achieved with shoppers in the retail setting. The thought is that at retail, a store can employ tactics on behalf […]

Shifts in Behaviors Leading Cause of Falling DVD Sales Among 13-24 Year Olds

Posted on 09. Feb, 2009 by in iGrok Research

updated 8:32 p.m. CT, Mon., Feb. 9, 2009 PASADENA, CA – Recent earnings reports from several major Hollywood studios indicate steep declines in home entertainment revenues despite growth in Blu-ray Disc sales. Recently, studio executives acknowledged that falling DVD sales may be a reflection of shifts in how people watch films, even if the economy […]

Market Research in Recessionary Times – Chapter Two

Posted on 22. Jan, 2009 by in iGrok Research

Is market research a first-to-be-cut expenditure in these economic straits? The Professor recommends otherwise. The Professor thinks companies should plan to make modest market research expenditures to make the most of the marketing, advertising, and promotional budgets they still have at hand. Why? Consumers will still buy necessities – such as food, shelter, utilities, gasoline, […]

Market Research In Recessionary Times

Posted on 14. Nov, 2008 by in iGrok Research

Obama will be in the White House, Democrats will hold sway in the Legislature, GM is teetering, banks are consolidating and sitting on their funds (not lending), American Express decides it wants to be a bank, home values have dropped precipitously. AIG and others are receiving huge emergency cash infusions and want more, and consumer […]

The Professor Has a Question

Posted on 01. May, 2008 by in iGrok Research

Recently, the professor was wondering – is “market research” dead? No, not the practice, skills, techniques and outcomes of market research, but the popular notion of market research. Colleague Gary White of Pacific Crest Marketing points out the proliferation of firms that say they offer Consumer Insights (rather than “market research”), and the Professor notes […]

Advertisers’ Love-Hate Relationship With Research

Posted on 25. Sep, 2007 by in iGrok Research

On a recent weekend The Professor sat in quiet fascination and was shaking his head when the following ad on cable concluded. The Professor won’t get it absolutely correct -the copy is from memory: “We at (large soft drink company) don’t think much of surveys (animated company logo symbolically gives the boot to a clipboard), […]

What’s in a Name?

Posted on 25. Sep, 2007 by in iGrok Research

In 2002, C.A. Walker and Associates, established in 1972, became C.A. Walker Research Solutions, Inc. The reason for the change: after thirty years, our image lagged our continuous improvements in skills, experience, and technology. We’d like to get the word out: we do sophisticated design and analysis, internet based research, and international projects. How did […]